Top Illinois basketball recruiting targets for 2028 have hit the upgrade button

Recruiting has been a hot topic for the Illinois basketball team since Brad Underwood took over.

Right now, the Illini are on the cusp of something pretty special. I think Illinois could have a great class of 2027, but the 2028 class is on the verge of potentially being the greatest group of recruits this program has ever seen.

Well, on Monday, that group hit the upgrade button. Rivals updated their Rivals 150, and now three Illinois recruiting targets are all in the top 10.

Arguably the biggest Illinois recruiting target, Brady Pettigrew, is now the No. 10 player in the class of 2028. He is also the No. 3 shooting guard in the country and the top player in the state of Illinois.

Illinois’ two other top targets are Dylan Betts and Benjamin Berrouet. Betts is logged as the No. 9 recruit in the country, and Berrouet is the No. 7 player in the class of 2028. Betts is also the top player in Colorado, and Berrouet is No. 2 in California.

All three players have taken or will be taking official visits to Champaign. Betts made the trip back in mid-September. Pettigrew is coming off his official visit this past weekend. Illinois rounds out the official visit trio with Berrouet coming to town on November 5.

These aren’t just pipe dream recruits for Illinois either. All three of these recruits are a realistic possibility. As of right now, Rivals has Illinois as the favorite to land both Berrouet and Pettigrew. We are a close second in the Betts’ sweepstakes.

Let it soak in that Illinois basketball could bring in three top 10 recruits, all of which are five-stars

I am old enough to remember the days when Illinois was just shooting for a top 100 recruit, let alone going after multiple top 10 players in a recruiting class. When we landed a top 50 player, it felt like a national championship was on the horizon.

Now, the Illini are legitimately in the running for three five-star players who are all in the top 10 in Rivals' updated rankings. We are favored in two of the three and are right there for the third. That is a wild thing to say.

On top of that, can you imagine all three pledging their commitment to Illinois? It would give us the top recruiting class in the country without a doubt. All three would fit perfectly together, too.

The 2028 starting lineup would feature Pettigrew running the backcourt and being the main scoring threat. Berrouet would be the perfect wing who could play anywhere on the court. And then you have a 7-foot-2 Betts, who could command the paint and stretch the floor.

Illinois landing all three massive recruits would send shockwaves through the college basketball world. Underwood has done wonders with recruiting, and this would be one of the greatest feats by an Illini head coach in school history. Let’s land all three.

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